(Peru, Neb.) – The Peru State volleyball team picked up their fourth Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart) win of the season on Monday night.
 
The Bobcats toppled the visiting Avila University Eagles 25-14, 25-20, 24-26, 25-19 to improve to 4-1 in the Heart and 13-8 overall. The Eagles left still looking for their first Heart win against five losses and fell to 8-9 on the season.
 
The four conference wins matches the highest amount of wins in the Heart since the Bobcats joined in 2011. Previously, Peru State had four conference wins in 2011 and in 2013.
 
First Set Highlights
 

Avila's only lead came at 3-2 early in the first set. Two service aces in the next Bobcat possession by Shannon Liewer (Imperial) put Peru State up 6-3 only to see the Eagles close to within one at 6-5. A kill by Rian Kirby (Gretna) on an assist from Brooke Rudebusch (Moorpark, Calif.) put the Bobcats up 7-5 only to see Avila come right back. Eventually, the Bobcats did expand their lead to 14-8 and led by as many as ten at 23-13 before capturing the first set win.
 
Second Set Highlights
 
The second set was very tight throughout as there were 18 ties. Avila's largest came at 14-12 with the Bobcats' five-point win at the end. A Kirby kill from Rudebusch and a service ace by Meg Grose (Peoria, Ariz.) tied it at 14-14 before the Eagles once again regained the lead. After the Eagles closed the gap to 23-20, another Kirby-Rudebusch combination made it 24-20 before Nohely Perez (Caracas, Venezuela) kill from Grose finished the set.
 
Third Set Highlights
 
It was a game of runs in the third set as Avila led most of the set before the Bobcats eventually tied it at 20-20 on an Alex Bowman (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) kill from Rudebusch. Perez put down back-to-back kills to give Peru State its first lead of the set forcing an Avila timeout. A kill by Kirby on an assist from Perez gave the 'Cats a three-point advantage before a service error stopped the Bobcat run at 23-21. Another Perez kill on an assist from Rudebusch gave Peru State set-point at 24-21. But three consecutive errors by the Bobcats allowed the game to be tied forcing a Bobcat time out. Back-to-back kills by Avila forced the game into the fourth set as the Eagles pulled out the set win.
 
Fourth Set Highlights
 
After the set was tied at 4-4, the Bobcats reeled off nine straight points behind the serving of Grose. During that span, Grose had two service aces and the 'Cats led 13-4. Peru State led throughout the rest of the set with the Eagles cutting the lead to six near the end. Jhessica Martins (Uberlandia, Brazil) put down the final kill on an assist from Grose to give Peru State its fourth conference win.

 
AVILA GAME BOOK

Statistics
 
Kirby and Martins led a balanced hitting attack for the 'Cats as they each finished with 13 kills. Martins hit .364 on the night. Perez added nine kills while Cristal Quinonez (Anthony, N.M.) had six kills.
 
Rudebusch and Grose distributed 23 and 22 assists respectively.
 
Grose led the team with three service aces while Nadja Janjevic (Podgorica, Montenegro) and Shannon Liewer (Imperial) each added two.
 
Liewer led the team with a game-high 26 digs while Rudebusch finished the game with a double-double as she added 15 digs to go with her 23 assists.
 
Martins and Janjevic each had one solo block. Janjevic added three block assists while Kirby and Bowman each had two. Perez and Lea Boras (Makarska, Croatia) each had one block assist.
 
Upcoming Games
 
Peru State will be hosting the top team in the Heart on Thursday when Evangel University (Mo.) visits the AWAC for a noon match. The time change was made to accommodate the Bobcats hosting their first "Middle School Appreciation Day." Several area schools will be in attendance to watch the Bobcats take on the ninth-ranked and 21-0 Crusaders. Evangel will play Tuesday night at home before traveling to Peru on Wednesday.
 
This weekend, the Bobcats will be in Lawrence, Kan., for a pair of non-conference games hosted by Haskell Indian Nations University on Saturday. At 1 p.m., Peru State will face Johnson & Wales University (Colo.). The Tigers are 7-15 on the season. Then, at 3 p.m., the Bobcats will face the tourney hosts who are currently 3-14.